Toyota’s Collaborative Safety Research Center (CSRC) plans to launch three new projects as part of its next research phase, dedicated to advancing safety in mobility technologies.

The research initiatives encompass various projects, including investigating driver support features for vehicle lane centering, developing an in-vehicle intervention prototype to promote safe driving, and utilizing data to enhance technology aiding driver decision making, all aimed at encouraging safer driving behavior.

In an additional step towards promoting road safety, Toyota has announced its collaboration with the Vulnerable Road User Injury Prevention Alliance at the University of Michigan International Center for Automotive Medicine.

This partnership aims to advance research into collisions involving shared road-users such as pedestrians, cyclists, and e-scooter riders.

VIPA's mission is to foster a comprehensive understanding of common scenarios involving motor vehicles and non-vehicle road users, historically associated with crashes and injuries. Through this collaboration, the ultimate goal is to contribute to the development of effective mitigation or prevention measures, benefiting the industry as a whole and creating safer roads for everyone.

Toyota's Commitment to Safety

Along with the 13 projects announced in 2022, the three new projects are part of the current five-year $30 million commitment to explore diverse safety needs and analyze inclusive mobility options that cater to various applications, physical characteristics and accessibility levels for individuals and society.

The three new research projects are:

Toyota created the Collaborative Safety Research Center in 2011 to advance mobility safety for industry and society through open collaborations with universities, hospitals and other institutions.

With current commitments, to date CSRC has received $115 million for foundational and applied safety research, including development of tools and testing procedures related to advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) and research into human factors on vehicle safety, among others.

The current phase of research 2022 – 2026 at CSRC is focused three key tracks:

1. Human-Centric: CSRC strives to help ensure that safe mobility technologies are universally accessible and comprehensible, enabling everyone to benefit from them.

2. Safety Assurance: By investigating traffic environment, human drivers and potential safety hazards, CSRC aims to enhance safe operations and mitigate risks associated with mobility technologies.

3. Assessment: CSRC focuses on quantifying mobility safety measures to facilitate informed decision-making and drive effective safety strategies.

These new initiatives join CSRC’s roster of 98 research projects with more than 30 different institutions.